Through Fire (Portland, ME #3) (32 page)

“Is she okay?”

“No. She’s in pain.” Ruby grabs my hand and pulls me over to where Mike and my brother are waiting. “Where is the doctor?” she asks, looking around. As if she summoned him, Dr. Ambrose appears around the corner. I’m surprised when I see him smile at her.

“You did well,” he says, when he gets close enough. The only one not surprised is Ruby.

“She showed me the camera. She’s not stupid—she’s hurt,” Ruby points out. She quickly explains what she’s learned and urges the doctor to find a young female physician to attend to her. “Can I stay with her?” Her face betrays her anxiety as she addresses him.

“Let me find one of our residents and we’ll discuss things then,” he says, his mouth twitching in amusement.

The moment he turns to leave, Ruby grabs my forearms. “I may be a while, why don’t you guys go back to the hotel?” Before I have a chance to open my mouth, Mike pipes up.

“I’d feel better if they stuck around, Ruby. I have to get going, though, but I’ll make sure you guys are covered,” he says the last to Mark and me. He doesn’t need to say anything else. He doesn’t want to take any chances and neither do I.

Not long after he leaves to make his calls, Ambrose is back with a young Latino woman in scrubs beside him. “This is Doctor Claudia Medina, chief resident in our ER. I thought perhaps it would be easier to eliminate the language barrier.” He smiles at Ruby.

Introductions are made and the older man turns to leave. “You’ll be in good hands with Dr. Medina,” he says, leaving Ruby looking a little disappointed as she edges closer to my side. The young woman looks too young to be a doctor, but she has a confident manner as she walks to the girl’s room. With her hand on the doorknob, she turns to look back at Ruby.

“I thought you were coming?” she says with one eyebrow raised. I barely have a chance to pull her in for a quick peck before Ruby hurries through the door first.

-

I
t’s near dinnertime when we get back to the hotel. Apparently room service has been there, because all the breakfast dishes we had spread around the suite have been cleared up. Mark immediately pulls out the menu and starts shooting off options, while Ruby kicks her shoes off and curls up on the couch. She’s exhausted but smiling.

“Want a drink, Boop?” I ask her, shamelessly interrupting my brother. Ruby turns her smile on me.

“Would love just some water, please.”

“Coming up,” I answer easily. “Brewski, Mark?” I ask him, as I make my way over to the bar fridge.

“Sure. So what’s it gonna be, little sis,” he teasingly says to Ruby, who chuckles softly. “Pasta, salad, or steak?”

“Steak, medium-rare.” She doesn’t hesitate in responding.

“My kinda woman,” I say, plopping down on the couch beside her, handing her a bottle of water and reaching Mark’s beer over to him. “Order me the same thing. Baked potato, loaded,” I add.

“Oh, yes. Me too.” Ruby snuggles under my arm.

As soon as the dinner order is placed, the mood turns more serious, when Mark asks Ruby to fill us in on the girl’s condition. I understand why he wants to know. Part of me wants to know, but another part doesn’t want to hear more about how unfathomably cruel some people can be.

“Her name is Nina. She’s fourteen years old and was taken from an orphanage near
Córdoba,
about six months ago, as far as she can tell.  It seems to be the preferred age.” My heart aches thinking about Ruby that young and vulnerable. Not to mention the number of young girls that may have been taken in the many years since then. “She doesn’t know of any relatives. She thinks one of the people working at the orphanage may have been involved.” She pauses and looks up at Mark. “Do you think we should call Mike?”

“Yes...” he nods, “but finish first.”

“ She has a brand similar to mine, on the inside of her leg, so I think she may have been held in a
calcuilchil
as well. I didn’t want to ask her about what happened to her. I thought it might scare her —”

“Wait,” Mark interrupts. “Sorry. What did you say about a brand?” He looks at me in disbelief. I guess we never shared that detail with him. Ruby is squirming in the seat beside me. so I take the question.

“Whenever new girls were brought to the place Ruby was at, and presumably others like it, they’d be branded. To show ownership.”

“Branded how?” he asks, his voice a little rough.

“With a branding iron,” Ruby answers this time. “Like cattle.”

“Christ.” Mark throws himself back in his seat and covers his face with his forearm. “Go on.”

“Are you sure?” Ruby leans forward and puts a hand on his knee, and he lifts his arm from his face.

“Yeah, honey. Go on,” he says, giving her an encouraging nod.

“Okay. Well, they did an MRI and a few X-rays. Claudia was really good with her, so she went in with her for those. They found some evidence of old injuries, but nothing looking to be within the last six months. No head injury on the MRI.” Ruby suddenly stops and I know she must be getting to the most difficult part. “She wanted to hold my hand while Claudia examined her. She has some tearing that will heal on its own. But both her...” A sob escapes her and I pull her against me.

“We get it, baby. We get it. That’s enough,” I murmur in her hair. Over her head, my eyes meet my brother’s and he looks as torn up as I feel.

“I dated a plastic surgeon last year,” Mark says suddenly. “We still talk from time to time, I can talk to her. See what it would take to get those damn brands removed. For both of you.”

“
No
.” Ruby surprises me with her prompt answer, and even more so, when she slips from my hold and crosses over to sit next to my brother, leaning in to kiss his cheek. “Thank you so much for the offer. Maybe it’s something we can offer Nina one day, but I’m keeping mine.”

“Whatever you want to do, babe,” I give in. “But why?”

She tucks her arm in to Mark’s and looks from him back to me.

“Because that mark was what made Nina open up. There may be more like her—like me—who need to see in order for them to trust.”

R
uby

“Can I have two Thursday specials?” Syd sticks her smiling face around the kitchen door.

It’s been two weeks since we were cleared to return to Portland; that was after spending our third night in the luxury suite. Mike had shown up during breakfast again and seemed very pleased with himself when he told us he’d been able to pit Milano against Lima. The former police captain realized, very quickly, that unless he turned state’s evidence, he would not only be vulnerable to the general prison population as a cop, but as a sex offender too. The first could get him shivved, but the second, as he was well aware, could end much worse than a quick death. Mike had made sure he was very clear on that. He’d been singing like a canary since coming to that conclusion.

He said the tying down of all of the evidence would be at least another few months, but that we were free to leave.

I immediately thought of Nina, and the fact that I wouldn’t be able to visit with her anymore. Claudia had called in CPS. Although she was keeping Nina for observation for another few days, CPS now controlled who and how long Nina could receive visitors. If not for Claudia, I wouldn’t have been allowed back to see her. With her intervention, I’d been able to spend a few hours with her yesterday.

“Can we visit Nina before we go?” My voice had a little wobble when I directed my question at Tim. Understanding immediately spread over his face.

“Absolutely.”

No hesitation at all. Just complete support, without any question. So damn beautiful, this man.

There were tears. Mine and Nina’s for sure, but I suspect Claudia may have blinked away a few as well. I hugged Nina, who no longer was kept in restraints, something Claudia took care of right away. I handed Nina a box with a cell phone, one matching the one in my purse, that Tim had insisted on buying for us on the way here. “So you can stay in touch,” he’d said.

“For real?” Nina said, sounding more like an American teenager than the little Mexican girl I met that first day. I smiled at her.

“Tim bought each of us one,” I replied in English, as I showed her mine. Her eyes immediately went to the window where Tim was peeking in through the now opened blinds. Hesitantly she raised her hand and wiggled her fingers at him; his face cracked open in a wide smile.

Tim had asked me to go home with him, but I wanted some time to myself. Mainly to try and process the whirlwind events. He’d driven me to Florence House, where I packed up my belongings and promised Pam I’d give her a call the next day. After that, he helped me carry my stuff up to the apartment and gave me a sweet kiss goodbye, before leaving me to fend for myself. I could tell he wasn’t happy, but other than demanding I call him before I go to sleep, he didn’t complain.

Last week I’d started back to work and was just finding my feet again, after being off for about two months. The welcome I received had been heartwarming, with hugs from Dino, Gunnar, Matt, Ike, and even Arnie. There were emotional tears from Viv, whose belly had expanded impressively since I last saw her.

Today was the first time working with Syd, who ended up escaping the winter cold by visiting Gunnar’s mother in Arizona with all three kids. She’d just gotten back the day before yesterday.

“I’ll bring them out,” I offer to her with a smile. “We’re out of guac, I quickly have to make some more.”

Today was my first hand at the Thursday Special. I’d spent most of last week practicing this easy recipe I found. Stacked nachos. It’s pretty easy, you brown some onions and ground beef. Add some salt and pepper to taste, find the best salsa you can buy, and add it to the pan to simmer with the beef. Place six-inch metal rings on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, and sprinkle some grated Monterey Jack on the bottom. Then you press in a layer of nacho chips, top it with the beef mixture, followed with some chopped green onions, jalapeños and more grated cheese. You repeat until you have three layers, ending with the beef and cheese. Bake for twenty minutes in a hot oven, top with fresh-made guacamole and a dollop of sour cream. I was so excited when Dino tasted it and suggested we make it for Thursday. A good call, apparently, since they’ve been flying out the door all night.

I make light work of the guacamole, pull two plates down and prepare the order. I’m rather pleased with myself. Dino is off again tonight, and so far I’ve managed the kitchen quite well. Orders had gone out smoothly and the evening rush had come and gone. I’d already started cleaning when this last order came through.

The pub is oddly quiet when I walk in, toting the tray of food. Syd is leaning against the counter, her eyes on the TV screen above the bar. So are everyone else’s. No one seems to notice me, until I slide the order in front of Syd. She looks at me a bit startled before her eyes lift to the screen again, only to come back to me. I throw a look over my shoulder to see what has everyone glued to the screen and am shocked to see a picture of Carlos Delgado flash across the screen.

“Turn it up,” I call to Matt, who’s manning the bar. He turns to me, but looks over my shoulder before doing as I asked. I feel an arm coming around my shoulders and a quick peek beside me finds Gunnar with a concerned look on his face.

“...
held in the murder of Carlos Delgado, almost a year ago, was found dead in his cell at the Nashua Street Jail earlier today, where he had been remanded until his upcoming trial. Lima, a former SAU detective for the Boston PD...
” I don’t have to hear anymore and slip right from under Gunnar’s arm to the kitchen, where I sink down on a chair and drop my head on the table.

Dead.

I should feel horrified. Even shocked. But all I feel is a vague sense of relief—of justice. I remember what Mike had told us. How cops, and especially cops who were child molesters, were automatic targets in jail. I can’t say I’m proud of the thought, but I hope he suffered. For what he had obviously put Nina through, and God forbid, how many other girls. I’d rather see him rot in hell over that, than have him live out his life in jail for killing one of his own kind.

I don’t know that I’ve been crying until Gunnar, who has apparently followed me, tosses a box of tissues in front of me. “How are you doing, Ruby?” he asks in his gravelly voice, filled with concern.

“I’m good,” I answer him, finding myself able to even smile. “I’m not sure what that says about me, but I feel lighter.” Gunnar shoots me a crooked smile back.

“I get that,” he simply says, before stepping around the table and leaning down to kiss my cheek. “Proud of you, girl,” he mumbles, turns around and disappears down the hall.

I scramble to find my phone in my purse, suddenly feeling the need to talk to Tim. When I finally locate it, I see I have three missed calls from him. I quickly hit call.

“I’m on my way.” Is the first thing out of his mouth when the call is answered after barely one ring.

“Honey...”

“Heard it on the news, baby. Hang in there, I’ll be there in five.” I hear a muttered conversation in the background and am only able to make out something about driving like a lunatic.

“Tim, listen to me,” I hurry before he hangs up. “I’m fine. I really am. Please drive careful.”

All I hear is a deep sigh followed by a pregnant pause. “I promise,” he finally answers before a click announces he’s ended the call.

I’m scouring the dirty baking sheets, lost in my thoughts, when familiar arms slip around my waist and pull me back into the hard wall of Tim’s chest. His chin lands on my shoulder, where he presses his cheek against mine. “I feel better now,” he says, making me snicker.

Wiping my hands on my apron, I cross my arms on top of his and lean my head back on his shoulder. “I’m really okay,” I assure him. “I just wonder if someone will tell Nina before she accidentally sees the news or hears it on the radio.”